Description
Delight in these classic Easter cookies, soft and buttery sugar cookies cut into festive shapes and decorated with colorful icing. Perfect for holiday celebrations, these cookies combine a simple dough with sweet, customizable icing to bring fun and flavor to your Easter table.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Icing Ingredients
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3–4 tablespoons milk
- Various colors of food coloring
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside to ensure cookies don’t stick and bake evenly.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Set this mixture aside for later incorporation.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a separate large bowl, cream the softened unsalted butter and granulated sugar using an electric mixer or wooden spoon until the mixture is light and fluffy, which helps create a tender cookie texture.
- Add Egg and Extracts: Beat in the egg, vanilla extract, and optional almond extract until the mixture is well combined and smooth, adding depth to the cookie flavor.
- Mix Dough: Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing just until combined to avoid overworking the dough and toughening the cookies.
- Roll and Cut Shapes: On a lightly floured surface, roll out the cookie dough to about ¼ inch thickness. Use Easter-themed cookie cutters to cut out shapes and carefully transfer them to the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake Cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden, indicating they’re perfectly baked without overcooking.
- Cool Cookies: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes to firm up, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely, which is essential for best icing adherence.
- Prepare Icing: While the cookies cool, mix together the powdered sugar, milk, and desired colors of food coloring in a bowl until the icing reaches a smooth, spreadable consistency suitable for decorating.
- Decorate and Set: Use the prepared icing to decorate the cooled cookies as desired. Allow the icing to set completely before serving to ensure a neat, festive appearance.
Notes
- For a softer cookie, do not overbake; remove just as edges start to turn golden.
- Chilling the dough for 30 minutes before rolling can help prevent spreading during baking.
- Almond extract is optional but adds a nice complementary flavor to vanilla.
- Adjust milk quantity to achieve desired icing thickness.
- Use gel food coloring for more vibrant icing colors without thinning the icing.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie (approx. 30g)
- Calories: 140
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 80mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 19g
- Fiber: 0.5g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
Keywords: Easter cookies, sugar cookies, holiday cookies, decorated cookies, festive treats
